Browne, Michael (David) (1887–1971), Dominican and cardinal, was born 6 May 1887 at Grangemockler, Co. Tipperary, son of Maurice Browne and Catherine Browne (née Fitzgerald), and was christened David. He attended the local school, of which his father was headmaster, and later Rockwell College, Co. Tipperary. When he entered (1903) the Dominican order at Tallaght, Co. Dublin, he received the religious name Michael. His ecclesiastical studies took place at Tallaght, at Rome where he became a priest (1910), and at the university of Fribourg in Switzerland. From 1914 he was master of novices and teacher of philosophy at Tallaght until leaving for Rome in 1919 to lecture at the Dominican College of St Thomas, subsequently called the Angelicum. Thereafter, he became the first Irish Dominican to hold any of the following prestigious posts. In 1932 he became both prior and rector of the Angelicum university. There he continued to teach till 1951, when he was called to the Vatican by Pope Pius XII as ‘master of the sacred palace’, the traditional theological adviser to the pope. The Dominican general chapter of 1955 elected him master of the order, which office he held till Pope John XXIII created him cardinal in 1962. This coincided with the opening of the second Vatican council (1962–5) in which he played a key role as a member and vice-president of the doctrinal commission. Few men of his time better understood the theology of Aquinas. His work for the Vatican council, usually described by journalists of the time as ‘conservative’, has yet to be evaluated by historians. In fact, some of his proposals proved too radical for the council to accept. Likewise, there is no historical account of his valuable work for the Dominican order. From the close of the council in 1965 till his death at Rome (31 March 1971), he devoted himself to the work of the Roman congregations or bureaux to which he was assigned. He was buried in the church of St Mary's, Tallaght. Some portraits of him exist, besides a bronze bust at San Clemente, Rome.
His immediate family was one of remarkable ability. Two of his brothers became priests: Pádraig de Brún (qv) and Maurice Browne (qv), who, as ‘Joseph Brady’, wrote The big sycamore (1958). His sister Margaret married Sean MacEntee (qv).